


The House on the Side of the Road

by Aviss



Category: Naruto
Genre: Ghosts, Haunted Houses, M/M, Mythical Beings & Creatures, Urban Legends
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-06-10
Updated: 2020-06-10
Packaged: 2021-03-04 05:28:21
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 10,805
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24648733
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Aviss/pseuds/Aviss
Summary: It was raining. Again. It was the thing Kakashi hated the most about autumn. The rain, and the chill that settled in the air and made people's mood turn foul, and the fact that Umino Iruka had disappeared on a day not unlike this one, windy and chilly and rainy.
Relationships: Hatake Kakashi/Umino Iruka
Comments: 30
Kudos: 124
Collections: KakaIru Mini Bang 2020





	The House on the Side of the Road

**Author's Note:**

> For the theme Urban Legends of the Kakairu Mini Bang. Kind of inspired in the song Hotel California, because I have an unholy fascination with haunted houses. Not my most terrifying work, but I hope it's creepy nonetheless.
> 
> Who's an idiot that let autocomplete write the title without double-checking? Right, that's me. Not the end of the road but on the side of the road, which makes more sense with the fic itself.

Kyone stared at the clouds gathering around the sun, covering everything and turning the light grey and dirty. She could smell the rain, could feel it in her ancient bones and the way her fur stood on end with static electricity. 

There was a storm coming. 

Up on the road, still too far away to be visible but with enough energy to be felt, someone was coming. In a few minutes, they would see the Inn, they would feel the exhaustion and find shelter from the storm, the cold and hunger and weariness overriding any misgivings they might have. 

And the Amemori would be ready to receive them.

Kyone shifted into her preferred form and approached the house as much as she could without being detected. It was too early for her to make her move, but soon she'd have her chance.

She needed to be ready too. 

…

The road between Ame and Konoha was one of the least travelled at that time of the year, the cold wind and rocky terrain making the trek unpleasant and slow going even without the rain, the signs of civilization few and far between. The last small village Iruka had passed had been a few hours ago, and he wasn't expecting to find another one before he reached Konoha, still almost a day away. That was the reason the house on the side of the road called his attention, making him stop and stare. That, and the wooden sign proclaiming it a guest house with available rooms. 

Normally Iruka would just push forward, walk for a few more hours and then sleep in the open. He'd done it a million times before and years of teaching had not made him so soft that he needed a proper bed to sleep in. He was cold and wet and tired, though. The mission had been simple, and he had escorted the merchant to Ame without having to do anything more strenuous than restrain himself from strangling the merchant's spoiled brat. It had been on the way back that he'd been attacked, and though the bandits hadn't been really challenging, Iruka had used up more energy fending them off than he liked to admit. He'd also twisted his left ankle, probably sprained it, and the pain of walking on it only added to his exhaustion. 

He really wanted to get home, but a night on a proper bed with a warm bath before was too tempting. With a weary sigh, Iruka turned and headed to the house. 

Up close the house looked nice and cosy. The building was old, but it was obviously well kept, the wood panelling on the walls and roof looked newly painted, the small garden at the front and back well maintained and vibrant in autumn colours, the entrance was beautifully tiled and the light on the front door was warm and inviting. Iruka opened the door and limped in, standing just inside and dripping on the tiled floor, reluctant to go in and mess the tatami he could see.

A girl in traditional clothes appeared at the sound of the chime over the door.

"Welcome to the Amemori Inn, how can we help you?" she said with a smile, her voice pleasant, and Ikura found himself returning her smile in spite of his weariness.

"I would like a room for the night."

"Of course, we have some available," she gestured to the front desk. "Would you like a towel?" She added, sensing Iruka's hesitation to follow her. She disappeared for an instant without waiting for his reply, when she appeared again she had a fluffy white towel in her hands. 

She passed it to Iruka, who took it gratefully and followed her, each step sapping a bit more energy out of him. God, had he really considered to keep going when he was so tired? "We have some single rooms with an ensuite bathroom and also a bathhouse at the back of the inn for guest use."

The mention of the bathhouse sealed the deal in Iruka's mind. "I'd like that."

"Would you also like dinner?"

Iruka considered for a second. He didn't feel hungry, just bone tired, and was about to refuse when his stomach growled loudly. He blushed hotly, moving his eyes away from the girl. "I guess I do, just something light."

She nodded. "We'll serve you dinner in your room in one hour."

"That's very kind, thank you."

She took his details and grabbed an odd-looking key from a box behind the desk. "If you would follow me, please?"

The room was at the end of a long corridor, several closed doors on both sides of it. It was eerily silent, the only sound that of the rain outside and the rustling of their clothes as they walked. Iruka had never been in an inn that looked so empty, it unnerved him the silence surrounding them. Maybe it was because of its remote location, not a lot of people walked that road during autumn, but he was expecting at least a couple of soaked travellers to stop by on a day like that. 

The girl stopped by the last door, opening it with the key before she handed it to Iruka. "You have a yukata and towels inside. We'll bring your dinner in an hour."

"The bathhouse?" Iruka asked before she closed the door. 

"Apologies," the girl said with a faint blush on her face. "The bathhouse is down the corridor on the left. The black door. It should be free now for you to use if you wish."

Iruka frowned and walked back to the door, looking out. He blinked, confused, there was indeed a corridor between two of the rooms on the left side, and they had walked past it. He must have been more tired than he realized, he had not even seen it, had confused it with another door. Shaking his head to clear it, Iruka mustered a smile. "Thank you." She inclined her head and closed the door, leaving Iruka alone. 

He took off his wet clothes in record time, draping the soft yukata around his chilled body, and headed straight to the bathhouse. A nice, long soak in a hot tub was his definition of paradise at that moment. It didn't take long for him to find it, the black door was at the end of the corridor like the girl had said. Iruka noted again how unnervingly silent the inn was; if there were more guests behind the closed doors, they had to be sleeping already in spite of the relatively early hour. 

The bathhouse was filled with steam and the pleasant smell of soap, and Iruka wasted no time disrobing and washing. He could feel the grime vanishing from his body, a soft sigh falling from his lips at the hot water. He went to the tub then, submerging himself in scalding water and groaning in pleasure. Just because of this it was worth getting home a day later, even if it meant not seeing Kakashi yet. Iruka closed his eyes, finally feeling his muscles unknot and his body relax. Maybe it was a good thing to take a day longer; it was said that distance made the heart grow fonder, and in the past few weeks since they had started dating, Kakashi and he had seen each other almost constantly. 

Then again, their hearts seemed to be fond enough, Iruka was already thinking about what he wanted to do to Kakashi when he arrived; a week apart was way too long when the relationship was still so new. 

He drifted off, enveloped by silence and steam, his mind busy with plans for the reunion. Maybe they could go to that new sukiyaki place that had opened close to the Hokage tower, they both enjoyed the food very much and eating in good company made it taste better. Or maybe Iruka could get the ingredients and cook at his place, that way Kakashi wouldn't need to wrestle with his mask and Iruka could enjoy his gorgeous face. Yes, definitely better to stay home; Iruka didn't want to wait to get his hands on Kakashi. He could already see it, Kakashi pressed against Iruka's bedroom wall, his mask down and--A whisper of sound, soft and almost out of hearing range, made Iruka's hair stand on end, ice dripping down his spine. He sat up suddenly, water splashing out of the tub at his movement. Something had startled him, a cold feeling washing over him and raising goosebumps even under the hot water. He shivered and took a deep breath. It had felt like someone was watching him, ridiculous as the notion was. There was nobody there, no sound and, he closed his eyes and focused his senses, no chakra close enough.

He was tired and too relaxed, but he was too well trained to have missed the presence of whatever had made that sound. He looked around, confirming the fact that he was the only one there, and closed his eyes to try and relax again. 

It was useless, Iruka admitted after a minute, the surge of adrenaline had him keyed up again and the disquieting feeling didn't subside. He got out of the tub and dried himself, putting on the robe before he headed back to his room. 

His food was waiting for him, and he wondered at the fact that he had spent almost an hour in the tub. With a yawn, he stretched and lied down on the bed to rest for a minute before he ate. 

He was out like a light in half that time. 

…

"Wake up. Come on, wake up!"

It was the urgency in the tone, more than anything, what made Iruka stir from the deep sleep he had fallen into. He awoke slowly, as if swimming through treacle, the darkness melting inch by inch around his consciousness. He tried to open his eyes, but the lids seemed to weigh a ton and his lips felt as if they were sealed shut. 

"They're coming. _Hurry_."

Something touched his face, something cold and wrong, and the shock of it was enough to startle him into wakefulness. He sat up on the bed, blinking owlishly in the dark room. 

He wasn't alone. 

Iruka's first instinct was to lunge for his weapons, which were still on his travel clothes. He was on his feet and rushing to them when he realized the intruder was a little girl. She couldn't be older than six and was wearing just a white robe over her thin body, her bare feet poking under it, white and pale and unnatural. The rest of her was as pale, black long hair framing her small face. 

"They're coming!" She was next to him before Iruka had even seen her move, her small hand grabbing his with more strength than she should possess. She was cold, her skin icy to the touch and hard as marble. Iruka flinched, trying to pull away from her touch. He couldn't. "We have to go!" she insisted, her face twisted in fear, her eyes darting from Iruka to the door. "Please, listen to me. Come with me."

He was about to try and get away from the girl again when he heard a noise coming from the corridor, a soft whisper of sound, like fabric dragging over the floor. It was barely audible and not threatening in itself, but it still made Iruka's hair stand on end, the little girl's eyes widened in panic. She pulled, dragging Iruka with her towards the door, and he dug his heels, suddenly certain that the last thing he wanted was to cross that door. Whatever it was coming from the corridor, Iruka didn't want to know. 

It was this reaction what finally snapped him into movement. Iruka was a lot of things, but a coward had never been one of them, and today wasn't the day he was going to become one. Something weird was going on here. The girl was still pulling at his hand, frantically trying to reach the door before the thing coming from the other side did. 

"Wait," he said looking at her. "Whoever is coming for you, I can stop them."

She shook her head. "They're not coming for me. And you can't stop the darkness."

Her words sent a shiver down his spine. Iruka didn't know what was going on, but all his senses were on alert, the adrenaline coursing through his body and clearing the last traces of sleep from his mind. The room was dark, darker than it should be during the full moon and with the blind open, and yet he could see the girl clearly. She had managed to get inside the room without waking him up, and her strength was one no girl that small should have. And yet Iruka could feel no threat from her. 

He went with his instinct, something that had saved his life on more than one occasion. There was something coming, and that something _felt threatening_. He followed the girl, and the moment she opened the door an icy feeling washed over Iruka, so powerful it almost paralyzed him. He faltered in his step, and the girl pulled harder. 

"They're close, we have to run!"

She turned to the right, where the corridor ended, and Iruka was surprised to see it now open to the right into another corridor he had not seen before. At his back, the coldness was approaching fast. He darted a look over his shoulder but could see nothing in the darkness, hear nothing but their breathing. 

No, that wasn't correct. He could see shadows, and they were moving. It was impossible, as the entire corridor was pitch black, but some of the shadows had a strange depth, and they were slithering silently towards them. They were also chattering, the noise unpleasant but soft.

"Where are we going?" he finally asked, his voice incredibly loud in the hushed inn. 

"A safe place."

They ran, taking turns blindly, Iruka's hand tightly clutched in the girl's. It was still freezing cold, in spite of the warmth it had been leeching off Iruka, and too small. The thing chasing them was getting closer, Iruka could feel it, and he was certain it would catch up to them when the air around them changed. They were outside, the smell of wet earth and pine trees told him as much, but the night was as dark outside as it had been inside the inn. The girl kept running, Iruka keeping pace with her and somehow managing not to stumble in the dark. They ran for what felt like hours, Iruka's breath rasping in his throat, his legs burning with effort.

And they were still being chased. 

She stopped after a while and for the first time since they had left his room, Iruka felt the other presence retreating. A faint light surrounded them, they were again inside some kind of building and there were candles lit around them. This place looked more like a temple than a house, in the dim light he saw a torii guarded by two Kitsune, ancient trees flanking it on both sides. The place had an aura of calmness, and Iruka relaxed for the first time since he woke up. 

"Where are we?" he asked, finally releasing the girl's hand. 

"My home. You'll be safe here for now."

"What was that? What did it want? Why are you helping me?" Now that the adrenaline was leaving his system, Iruka had millions of questions. He couldn't even begin to understand what had happened, but he hadn't felt fear like that in his life. 

The girl shook her head. "That was the darkness, the curse of the Amemori. It would have trapped you inside, taken you and made you part of it. You are safe here now."

"Who are you?"

"A friend. Now rest, you will need your energy if you're going to make it out of the inn tomorrow."

Iruka wanted to protest, question the girl until he could understand what was happening, but his eyes were closing, his body shutting down against his will. 

He slept. 

…

It was raining. Again. 

It was the thing Kakashi hated the most about autumn. The rain, and the chill that settled in the air and made people's mood turn foul, and the fact that Umino Iruka had disappeared on a day not unlike this one, windy and chilly and rainy. 

It had been a year since Iruka had failed to return from his mission, practically vanishing into thin air on the road between Ame and Konoha. That same road Kakashi was travelling through now. Kakashi could still remember everything about the day Iruka had been declared MIA, the search party that had been sent to Ame to look for either him or his body. They had returned empty-handed, shaking their heads and declaring Iruka had just vanished into thin air. Without a body, without proof of any attack on him, Iruka couldn't be declared dead. The conclusion, one that didn't sit well with anyone who had ever known him, was that he had deflected, gone rogue.

Kakashi had called bullshit, gathered his own search party and gone after him. They had uncovered exactly nothing, the trail going cold somewhere between Ame and Konoha, but he still couldn't believe that Iruka had abandoned his village. If something had happened to him, if Iruka had died during a mission, Kakashi would accept it and move on. It would hurt, but they were shinobi, death was a part of their lives. But betrayal, especially coming from Umino Iruka, was unthinkable. They hadn't been together for a long time but Kakashi knew him, if there was something Iruka was, it was loyal. 

That was the reason Kakashi was travelling that same road again. He knew it was becoming an obsession, that Tsunade and Gai and the rest of his friends were getting worried. They didn't believe Iruka had betrayed Konoha, but as time passed, they were more and more convinced that he was dead and Kakashi should accept it and move on. 

Maybe, when he came back if he hadn't found anything, he was going to have to do it. But not yet. 

First, he was going to go to Ame and ask some questions, follow Iruka's trail again. 

…

The house wasn't there the last time Kakashi walked that road a few days back. 

Kakashi stared at the building, the sign proclaiming it had available rooms calling his attention. It was impossible, as he had walked that same road several times during the past year and he had never seen it. Guesthouses didn't sprout, fully formed and with vacancies, in the middle of nowhere one day from the next but the fact remained that there was a guest house there. 

An old story, the kind genin used to tell each other late at night when he was a child, came to his mind. The cursed Inn, the Amemori, that trapped and devoured unwary travellers. Kakashi had laughed at it then, not believing in ghosts.

He wasn't laughing now.

He uncovered his Sharingan and checked the house. It wasn't an illusion, the building looked solid and real, and though there was strange energy surrounding it, it wasn't chakra. He took a step towards it, his instinct telling him it was a very bad idea. Iruka had disappeared in this area, though, and there could be some answers here. He hadn't found them anywhere else. 

The closer he got to the house, the more tired Kakashi felt, as if he had been fighting and running the entire way from Konoha. His mind was telling him that it was late, and he felt exhausted, and the wind and rain weren't going to stop. Why not spend the night inside? The house looked nice and it had rooms, and just one night wasn't going to set him back too much. Nobody was waiting for him in Konoha, after all.

Kakashi stopped, still a few feet from the door. He was an expert in exhaustion and chakra depletion and this time he wasn't tired, he knew he wasn't. He had not engaged in combat in the past few days, walking and asking questions weren't taxing activities, as wearisome as the answers had been. The feeling was strong and compelling, if he hadn't been searching for strange things he wouldn't have doubted it. He took a deep breath and covered his Sharingan again before heading to the door and entering the guest house. He noticed the well-maintained garden and the beautiful tiled floor, and the fact that there were no shoes in the entrance as if the inn was completely empty. He went inside completely uncaring of the way he was letting water drop on the tatami, letting his shoulders drop and his back bend a little, the picture of sheer exhaustion. 

An old woman appeared as soon as the door was closed, the sound of the chime echoing inside the silent inn. 

"Welcome to the Amemori Inn, how can I help you?" Her voice was low and calming, almost soothing, and the smile made her look soft, grandmotherly, and non-threatening. 

Kakashi was immediately on his guard, so much for ghosts not being real.

He exhaled wearily and returned her smile. "I'd like to have a room if you have any available."

"Of course, we have some rooms open now. Would you like a towel?" She said, walking behind the desk and handing one to Kakashi. 

He took it, rubbing the back of his neck with an embarrassed twist of his mouth. "I'm sorry, I didn't notice I was so drenched. Sorry about the floor."

"Don't worry, it happens. It's raining harder than I thought."

"Yes."

"We have some single rooms with ensuite bathrooms, and there is a bathhouse for guest use if you like."

"Sounds great."

She took his details quickly and grabbed one of the keys from the back. Kakashi noticed there were quite a few keys missing, though he couldn't hear any noise coming from inside the inn. "Would you like some dinner as well?"

Kakashi suddenly felt famished at the mention of dinner; that was odd, he'd eaten a ration bar not long ago. "Yes please."

"We'll have it in your room in an hour. This way, please." He followed the woman down a corridor, all the doors along it closed and was completely silent. It unnerved him. 

His room was at the end and the woman opened the door and passed him the key. "You have a yukata and towels for you to use. The bathhouse is at the beginning of the corridor, turning on the left. The one with the black door. We'll have your dinner brought to you in an hour."

Kakashi nodded his thanks and waited for the door to close before uncovering his Sharingan again. He had been paying attention during the walk and had not seen the corridor branching anywhere, but he had no doubt that the path the woman had mentioned would be there now if he checked. The room was nice, cosy and inviting, and Kakashi had to fight the urge to lie down on the bed and rest. _He was so tired._ Instead, he examined the room carefully, trying to spot any pattern or foreign energy in it. 

There was nothing, only the feeling in his gut telling him this place wasn't what it looked like and faint memories of an old ghost story. He didn't like it, same as he didn't like the silence surrounding him. He removed his wet clothes and put on the yukata, carefully picking some of his weapons and concealing them as best he could. It wasn't the most comfortable, but it made him feel a bit better leaving his room. He walked down the corridor, heading towards where the bathhouse was supposed to be. Kakashi looked at each of the closed doors with his Sharingan, searching he didn't know what. Most of them looked normal, if one ignored the fact that the entire inn appeared to be empty and Kakashi couldn't even hear _breathing_ behind any of those doors.

That wasn't right, Kakashi had never known of an inn without a single occupant, especially in a day like that, no matter how remote the location. There was something else, though, and it took Kakashi a moment to notice what it was. The light was all wrong. Outside the sky was grey and heavy and with rain, but that didn't explain how dark it was inside the inn. There were windows, all facing the garden surrounding the house, and yet the corridor was too dark, the shadows too deep, especially around some of the doors. 

He passed the corridor the woman had mentioned, the one that hadn't been there before, and turned to it. At the end was the black door, and when Kakashi opened it the steam from the hot tub curled around him invitingly. He felt exhausted again, wanted nothing more than to strip off his robe and sink into the scalding water until he felt his body relax. He was already there, and it would help him sleep better. It was tempting; a nice hot bath and then a night of uninterrupted sleep, it had been too long since he enjoyed one of those, since before Iruka had disappeared and he--Kakashi grabbed one of his kunai and pressed the tip against the palm of his hand, letting it pierce the skin and snapping him out of a trance. 

He was inside the bathhouse, the belt of the yukata already undone and a bucket of water ready to use. 

He had not been conscious of going in or closing the door, Kakashi arranged his clothes and got out of the room before he could think of what he was doing. He went straight to the front door, looking for the old lady, calling for her. 

There was nobody at the front, only silence answered him. More than a little unnerved, Kakashi crossed the entrance and opened the door to the outside. It was still raining, harder than he had ever seen before, he couldn't make the road or the forest outside, the rain falling in sheets and making him feel isolated. He didn't want to go out, where it was cold and wet and miserable. It was better to stay inside, warm and with a nice dinner waiting for him in his room. 

_He was so tired._

Kakashi took a step outside, forcing his body to move in spite of what his brain was telling him, but instead of being drenched by the falling rain, he found himself stepping inside his room, the promised dinner already waiting for him, the smell of it making his mouth water, knees wobbling with weariness. He blinked and turned to the door. This time he went straight for the front door, not calling anyone and not stopping to check anything else. 

The rain was still falling, still surrounding them and making Kakashi feel as if he was completely alone in the world. He might as well have been.

He took a step and was again inside his room.

This place was bad news, he had known that before he even entered. He might have made a mistake entering it. He wondered if Iruka had been here as he suspected, if he had been going back to Konoha after his mission and seen the house, felt the tiredness compelling him to spend the night in, to rest before continuing his trip. 

Kakashi wondered whether Iruka had known what was happening or had just fallen asleep and never woke up.

…

" _Wake up._ "

Iruka had a brief moment of dislocation at the voice taking him from his dreamless sleep and for an instant, he believed he was still inside the room in the inn and something was coming for him. He blinked his eyes open and his surroundings came into focus, the torii gate guarded by two kitsune, and the deep green forest around the temple. The night before was still fresh in his memory, though in the light of day it was hard to remember the sheer terror he had felt. 

It had been real, though. The girl's presence by his side was enough proof of that. 

"We have to go back, the Amemori has reappeared," she said when she noticed Iruka's eyes on her. In here, in the light, she didn't look as unnatural as she had back then. She was still pale, and her eyes were too old for her face, as ancient as the forest surrounding them and as full of secrets, but she didn't look like a spectre anymore. She extended her hand and Iruka took it before being conscious of moving. It was as hard and cold as he remembered. "We have to get to the inn before the sun goes down or you will be trapped again."

Iruka followed her out of the temple, not doubting her words after what he had seen and felt the night before. "What was that last night?" he finally asked when the silence began to stretch too awkwardly around them. Without anyone chasing them and the blind terror of the previous night, Iruka had to wonder at his own reactions. 

He trusted his instincts, what he was not used to was trusting a stranger so quickly.

"The darkness, the curse of the Amemori," she replied, the exact same words she had used before. It hadn't cleared any of Iruka's doubts the previous time, and it didn't now. 

"So you said last night," he replied as they walked around a tiny winding road surrounded by trees. It was impossible to see anything except for the green of the foliage and the white of her robe, and each step they took towards the house was making Iruka feel more and more uncomfortable about it. He wasn't sure he wanted to go back. "What is it?"

"The Amemori used to be a nice place," she began, not really answering Iruka's question. Her voice had a faraway quality, that of faint and beloved memories, Iruka let her talk hoping she would explain something with her tale. "A long time ago a family founded it, wanting to give shelter to travellers on this road. They were gentle people and treated their guests nicely. They also cleared the path from the inn to the temple, and we began to get more visitors and offerings. Those were good times."

The temple had looked abandoned to Iruka, the path leading to it almost hidden in the forest. It was no wonder it was empty now. 

"The inn passed on to the owner's sons, and then the sons of his sons for many generations," she continued. "One night, one not unlike the one you found your way to the inn, a couple arrived seeking shelter. There were no other guests, there had been a war and the roads weren't travelled. They stayed the night and realized the place was isolated and perfect for their purposes. They killed the owners and took their place, pretending to be the children they never had. Mostly, they ran the inn as the previous owners had done, but on nights where there were only one or two guests they would steal into their rooms and kill them." She stopped walking and looked at Iruka with her fathomless eyes. "You know of death in battle and in war, so I do not need to tell you the kind of people who kill for fun."

"No." He knew enough about the kind of people she was talking about, monsters drunk on bloodlust and who got off on fear. 

"They carried on for years, and killed many, until one night a woman and her young daughter arrived. She was like you, a fighter, and when they came for her she woke up and fought them off. She managed to escape and ran until she reached the temple, but her daughter had been wounded and died there. The woman left her little girl in the temple and returned to the inn. She burned it to the ground with the owners inside. It should have been the end, but they hadn't had enough and the place was too tainted, too soaked in blood and cursed to simply disappear. It comes back, though it doesn't really exist, on nights when they can entrap some lost traveller." 

Iruka understood what the girl was telling him. He had never been one to believe in ghost stories, but he was living one now, what choice did he have? "What was the girl's name?" he asked when it looked like she was done talking. 

"Kyone."

"Is that who you are?"

She gave him a little smile, nothing more than a twitch of her lips, and for an instant, Iruka thought he could see another face, one that wasn't human, beneath hers. "It is now, it wasn't before. She died at my temple and I couldn't help her. It's fitting now that I became her to help others."

He nodded and kept walking behind her in silence, lost in his thoughts. 

…

Kakashi looked out of the window in his room, though he didn't know what he was expecting to see. Outside, the rain was falling and the sun was setting. The light was grey and dim, depressing, and he had the feeling that when the sun was finally gone things would take a turn for the worse. It was always that way in horror stories, it fit that if something was going to happen, it would happen when it was dark outside. 

He needed to get out of the inn. 

He put on his clothes again, ignoring the unpleasant sensation of wet and cold fabric on his skin, and stepped out of the room. Inside, the shadows were lengthening, getting darker and deeper, they carried a sense of menace around them that made Kakashi's hair stand on end. He headed to the back this time, turning in the direction opposite to the corridor where his room was. He had seen a garden at the front, and hints of one at the back. There had to be a door leading to the back garden, and he hoped it wouldn't send him back to his room. 

There was still no other noise but his steps and breathing, and no sign of the old woman who had greeted him and showed him to his room. He walked down the corridor, checking the doors to the rooms with his Sharingan and searching for any sign. There had to be something; if Iruka had been here some trace of him would have been left, Kakashi would recognize his chakra immediately. There was nothing, though. 

Painful as it was to accept, if Iruka had ended up in this strange place, he was most likely dead. 

The corridor turned to the left on the end, rows of doors flanking each side again, and after that another turn to the left, more doors and another one. Kakashi stopped before the third turn, frustrated. He was going in circles. He doubled back, walking in the opposite direction, and wanted to scream in frustration when he noticed he was doing the same again. 

He stopped, closed his eyes, and took a deep breath. 

When he opened his eyes again, he was in front of the bathhouse. That damned inn really wanted him to go inside. 

He gave in to the compulsion, opening the door and crossing the bathhouse to the other end in a few quick steps. There was a small door there, one he remembered seeing briefly when he had been inside before. He opened it quickly and got out, facing another corridor like the ones he had left behind. He was ready to tear his hair out in frustration when he noticed the door to the back garden at the end of it, and he could hear something coming from the other side. There was the rustle of leaves, and people talking in hushed voices. 

Kakashi took position where he could see the door but wouldn't be immediately noticed. Everything he had seen had made him extremely wary of whatever was going to come from the door. 

When it opened a small girl in a white robe crossed it silently. There was something not entirely human in her, her skin pale and almost luminous, her eyes ancient and sad and terribly out of place in that young face. Kakashi looked at her with his Sharingan and saw she wasn't an illusion. Also, she wasn't really alive. 

That wasn't what made him freeze, though. 

Behind the girl, very much alive and real, was Umino Iruka. 

…

There was a subtle change in the light as they came out of the forest. It was darker, almost as if night was falling though Iruka knew they hadn't been walking for that long, and it was raining. In the distance, they could see the shape of the inn, blurry under the heavy rain but unmistakably there. 

The last thing Iruka wanted to do was go back inside. 

He clenched his fists against the feeling, fighting the fear trying to claw up his throat. It was irrational, as they had not seen anything to warrant it, but Iruka was way past the time to question anything he might feel. Instinct told him it was dangerous to go back inside the inn, and he believed it. It also told him that if he ever wanted to return home, he was going to have to go through it. 

Iruka was used to fear, he had never allowed it to dictate his actions and wasn't going to start now. 

"We have to get to the front garden before night falls. There is a door in the kitchen that will take you there, the garden is your way out," Kyone said, her voice quiet as if she didn't want to alert the inhabitants of the house of their presence.

"We can't go from the outside?" He asked when they reached the door. They were in the back garden, and the idea of going back in made him freeze in terror. He dug his nails in his palms to fight the feeling, spur himself into motion. He missed his weapons and his uniform, as he had left the night before with just the robe he had been wearing when he fell asleep. 

"No, the house is a bridge between your world and mine right now. You need to cross it."

He had expected as much and just nodded his head as Kyone opened the door and lead them back inside. 

He noticed the presence almost immediately, the corridor shrouded in darkness hiding it from view, but Iruka could hear breathing, the sharp intake of breath and then the rustling of motion. He tensed, ready for an attack. He felt, more than saw, the blur of movement before a body slammed against his, ripping him from Kyone's side and pushing him against the wall. The body was warm and human, and incredibly familiar. 

He blinked at the face scant inches from his, and not even the darkness rapidly invading the corridor could have prevented recognition. " _Kakashi_?" It wasn't possible; he was still in Konoha, still waiting to be cleared for active duty again after another chakra draining mission. Iruka wondered if it was another trick of the house. He darted a quick look at Kyone, her nod and the stillness of her posture telling him that, against all odds, this was the real Kakashi. "What are you doing here?"

Kakashi was staring at him with narrowed eyes, his Sharingan spinning wildly. "What was the last thing you told me?" he asked, a wild edge to his voice. 

"What--" Kakashi had his Sharingan out and was asking Iruka something only he could know, however he had made his way to the house, he was clearly doubting his senses.

"The last thing you told me?" He repeated, urgently. 

On the side, Kyone was staring at them with curiosity. 

"I said, _'now you'll know how it feels to be the one waiting. I expect dinner and sex on my return_ '."

"Iruka." The pressure against him relaxed minutely, something in Kakashi's expression shifting to one of wonder and incredulity. "You made me wait too long."

It made no sense to Iruka, but he clung to Kakashi all the same. It was the first thing that felt real to him since he had entered that accursed house, the first thing that didn't feel like something out of a nightmare. 

"What are you doing here?" he asked again. 

"Everyone thought you were dead or had betrayed us and left. But I didn't. I needed proof, so I kept searching. The moment I saw this place I knew there was something off with it, and I was right. You've been here the entire time." 

"The entire time?" Iruka asked, confused. He could feel the sun setting, urging him to move, to find the exit to that place, but there was something in Kakashi's expression, in his desperation, that set alarms off in his mind. "I got here yesterday."

Kakashi shook his head. "You've been gone for a year."

 _"A year?"_ He turned to Kyone. 

"Time has no meaning for the house or for me. I let you sleep until the house appeared again." 

Iruka suddenly felt as if he couldn't breathe, the full implications of what Kyone confirmed setting in his mind. 

A year. He would have been declared MIA and without a body as proof of death, he would have been thought to have deflected. A year spent trapped here, sleeping, and now he wouldn't have a home to go back to.

Except that Kakashi was here, and he hadn't given up on him. 

Iruka all but ripped Kakashi's mask down and held his face between his hands, kissing him with bruising force. They didn't have time for it, and yet nothing in the world would have stopped him from kissing Kakashi, his taste and feel still fresh enough in his memory that he sunk gratefully into its familiarity. Kakashi responded with a frenzy that betrayed the time it had passed for him, his hands gripping Iruka's sides hard enough to bruise, his tongue demanding and so comforting that Iruka wanted nothing more than to keep kissing him forever even as the shadows stretched around them.

…

Irula was there, alive and pressed hard against him, kissing him like he needed the breath from Kakashi's lungs to survive. Kakashi knew he did, had not realized he hadn't taken a full breath since the day Iruka had been declared MIA. Now, he could fill his chest and senses with the taste he had almost forgotten, could feel Iruka's warmth under his palms and his heartbeat pounding against his own chest.

"Now it's not the time, they're coming!" The girl's shout startled them apart, the moment broken. 

She was right, of course, the night was coming fast and they needed to get away from there. 

Still, Kakashi didn't want to fully release Iruka, could hardly believe that he was there, was real, and for him barely any time had passed. He had a million questions in his head, a million things to tell him of the year he had missed, but now was not the time for words. 

Now was the time to run and get out of that place. The questions would keep. 

He felt it when the quality of the shadows around them changed, a chill sweeping down his body and a new kind of terror trying to paralyze his limbs. He was used to fear, had never gone into battle without feeling it whether for his own life or the safety of his team, and would never let that emotion cripple him. 

They both turned to stare at the girl who gave a short nod and started running down the corridor. "We need to get to the entrance, there is a door there leading to what was the kitchen and from there to the front garden. That's the only way out right now."

They followed her without questioning, Kakashi's senses on alert as night fell outside, the dark grey of the rainy afternoon giving way to a moonless, hungry night. He heard it then, a slithering sound, just on the edge of hearing but enough to make his blood run cold. He wanted to look back to calculate the distance with whatever it was approaching but knew the moment he did he might he would be lost. There was only so much fear he could field.

" _Help, please help,_ " one voice said, there was an edge of familiarity in it that made Kakashi slow down a fraction.

"Don't stop!" the girl shouted, her hand grabbing Iruka's wrist and pulling. "Don't look back!" The corridor seemed never-ending, their steps not bringing them any closer to the end as the darkness closed behind them. 

Something brushed Kakashi's arm, a feeling like fingers trying to wrap themselves around his wrist though their nails were not blunt but sharp, the points scratching his skin and drawing blood. He heard a satisfied sigh, " _More_ ," a new voice said, old and cracked and starving. " _More_."

Kakashi sent more chakra to his feet for a burst of speed, he wasn't closer to the end of the corridor nor was he further from their pursuers. It was a game, Kakashi realized, his heart hammering in his chest, his mouth dry. Whatever it was in the inn, it was playing with them as a lazy cat did with the mouse.

In front of him, Iruka and the girl kept running, their eyes straight ahead. They didn't see the corridor branching out, the shadows coming at them from the right. Game over.

"Shit," Kakashi shouted, already knowing he wasn't going to get out. 

It would be enough if Iruka did. 

In one jump he was right on top of Iruka, he pushed him forward and saw him stumble clean past the new corridor. Iruka turned to look at him, eyes impossibly wide and his hand extended as if to grab Kakashi, just as the darkness surrounded him and pulled him under with the gentleness of a thousand knives stabbing into his body. 

...

Iruka stared in horror as the darkness closed around Kakashi, dragging him away from them at the same time a new corridor opened on their left, and beyond it the entrance of the inn he remembered. He stopped, turning to go after him, but Kyone's grip on his wrist was strong, and she was still running away from the darkness, dragging him along with a strength she should not possess. 

"Stop! What are you doing?" Iruka dug his heels and tried to shake her hold, Kyone finally stopped moving. 

"They took him," she whispered, her voice small and afraid, and when she turned to look at him her face was paler than usual, the pain clear in her expression. Iruka bristled, she was writing Kakashi off. Her next words confirmed it. " _He's gone_ , but you can still make it. We have to run."

Kyone started to move again and Iruka clenched his fist and dug in harder. "No. We're going after him."

"We can't help him, he's gone!"

Iruka felt himself giving in, the urge to follow Kyone almost overwhelming. He dug his nails into his palm until it passed. " _No_."

"We don't have time, the house will disappear again soon and you'll be as trapped as he is. They won't even need to chase you."

Iruka shook his head and stood his ground. He had been following her lead blindly since Kyone appeared, but it was time to fight now. He wasn't going to leave anyone behind so he could escape, especially not Kakashi. 

"I don't care." Iruka insisted, though the idea of being trapped inside the house terrified him. "Kakashi entered here looking for me, I'm not leaving him behind." He turned, shaking Kyone's grip on his hand off and took a step towards the place where Kakashi had disappeared. "If you want to return to your temple, do it. I'm not leaving without him, you've already told me where the exit is, I'll find it."

"No, wait!" She grabbed his hand again, stopping him. "Don't go that way." She pulled him in a different direction, a new corridor opening on the left. "Come, this way. We have to get to the bathhouse before they do."

"I told you--"

"We're not leaving," she cut him off, fixing him with a hard look, and she looked more like a fox than a girl at that moment, her mask slipping away for an instant. "We can only leave through the garden path. They always take their victims to the bathhouse first when they are angry, they won't make it quick." Iruka felt ill at her words and the images they conjured. "You evading them will have enraged them, they'll take their time. If you really want to help him, we need to get there first."

This time, when she moved, Iruka went with her willingly. 

They reached the black door of the bathhouse in a minute, and when they opened it they were immediately enveloped in a curtain of steam, so thick it felt more like fog. It was icy cold, nothing like the pleasant hot steam of a real bathhouse, Iruka felt his teeth chattering. 

They were coming. 

He took a deep breath, steeling himself. Chances were, he wasn't going to succeed. He knew how to fight people, how to battle with other shinobi, but he had never faced an enemy he couldn't touch. Terror and helplessness curled in his stomach, his free hand beginning to shake. 

"You can't kill them," Kyone said like she could read Iruka's thoughts. She probably could, all things considered, and her words weren't reassuring Iruka. "But you can stall them; buy enough time so we can get to your friend and leave. You can hurt them enough they will let you go."

"How?"

"Fire. The only thing they fear is fire. It was what destroyed them in the first place, can you summon it like other fighters?"

Yes, he could. It wasn't his strongest jutsu, but he had used it and taught it enough times he could do it in his sleep if necessary. He took a deep breath, centering himself, and gathered as much chakra as he could. He could repeat the jutsu as many times as necessary, but he wanted the first blast to be strong enough to give him an edge. 

"When they come in," he said, not looking at Kyone, his attention focused on the door, "I will unleash the fire to make them retreat. You get Kakashi, I know you're strong enough to drag him out of here if necessary."

"It will be better if we--"

"No," he cut her off before she could finish, not wanting to hear her suggestion. He had a feeling that if she had her say, he would do what she suggested. "You said it yourself, I'm a shinobi. I know what I'm doing don't try to convince me otherwise."

She gave him an assessing look. "Since when have you known?"

"That you were influencing me?" Iruka laughed, thinking about the past day. "I didn't, not until now. But before, when you wanted me to run, I almost did. That's not something I would normally do."

"You ran last night."

"I wasn't leaving anyone behind."

The fog around them thickened impossibly, and they tensed, ready. 

"I'll get you both out," Kyone said right before the door opened. 

The shadows poured in from the opened door, its voice strident. He couldn't hear Kakashi, at least not until there was a splash from the tub, then his scream filled the room.

…

The darkness trapping Kakashi was alive and cold and furious. 

He could feel it, pulsing around him and whispering in his ear, trying to crush the breath out of him and clawing at his skin. It was painful, more painful than anything he had experienced before, and he'd had his share of pain in his life. It made him feel as if his skin was on fire and freezing at the same time, and the voices shouting from within had the quality of nails over chalkboard. 

He was afraid in a way he had never been in his life, this wasn't an enemy he could kill or one he could analyze. He knew bloodlust, enough to feel revulsion when the hands of darkness touched him. He could hear their whispers and feel their anger. They weren't going to make it quick, but Kakashi didn't care about that, what he cared about was Iruka leaving this place and he had been so close to the exit. He would have to convince everyone that he had not defected, but that should be easy for him once he was back in Konoha, even with Kakashi gone. 

He gritted his teeth against the pain, he wasn't going to scream. 

He thought about the first time he had gone out with Iruka, how he had not expected much from that date. Most dates were disappointing for Kakashi, who was always expected to be the Copy Nin and rarely allowed to be himself, or he was found wanting when he was. He had almost given up on dating when the last person he would have expected had asked him out for a movie. 

"I would have said dinner and a movie," Iruka had said from his position behind the mission desk, the light tapping of his fingers on the table the only thing betraying his nerves, his face blandly composed. "But I bet that's the number one excuse to peek under your mask."

Kakashi had liked that insight, that had been the reason he'd said yes. That and the fact that Iruka was gorgeous.

He had not tried to peek under the mask, he had suggested taking a walk after the movie, not one of the action titles people expected him to favour, but a sci-fi one based on a book Kakashi had been dying to watch. They walked and talked for hours, until night had fallen and the moon had illuminated Iruka's features just so. Kakashi had not been able to resist, he had covered Iruka's eyes with his hand and felt the flutter of his eyelashes against his palm when he closed them. He had kissed him then, in the middle of a field with just the moon and the trees looking. He had known since that moment he would never have enough of Iruka's mouth and his taste.

If he was going to die now, he was glad to have kissed Iruka one last time. 

The shadows receded for a heartbeat as his resolve to keep his mouth closed began to wan, Kakashi had felt pain before but never like this, never like being stabbed by a hundred blades of ice, so cold and hard they felt like tongues of fire on his skin. Then suddenly they were all gone, and he was falling, and falling, and falling. The scalding water of the tub felt like lava when he was submerged, and now he couldn't help himself and screamed at the sudden plunge. Laughter at the edge of his hearing, the water suddenly turning frigid and cutting his skin. 

He pushed himself up, feet clumsy, the soles of his boots sliding on the bottom of the tub. 

"Kakashi, down!" 

He obeyed before his mind had fully registered the words, sinking again under the water, his eye opened to see the orange and red reflection of what could only be a fire jutsu. The voice had been Iruka's, Kakashi cursed the fool for not leaving him there and saving himself, and vowed at the same time to get out of there together and kiss him until they both passed out for lack of oxygen. He stared at the flames, the breath burning his lungs, and saw when the colour changed slightly on one side. 

That was his cue. 

With a burst of chakra, he jumped out of the tub in that direction, blinking rapidly to focus his sight. Iruka was there, and so was the little girl approaching Kakashi quickly. He dodged her and skid to a stop next to Iruka. 

"You didn't leave," he said, his voice rough while he started the signs for the jutsu he needed.

"You came for me, I'm not leaving without you," Iruka replied without looking at him. 

Kakashi didn't waste more breath in an argument he wasn't going to win, he finished preparing his jutsu and blew a gust of wind on the dying flames. The effect was immediate, the fire burst again, filling every inch of space in the bathhouse and crackling savagely. The air got thin and stuffy, harder to breathe, their eyes watering as they were pushed back against the far wall. On the other side of the bathhouse, the shadows were shrieking and coldly furious, expanding somehow in spite of the flames.

"Run," the girl shouted at them as the voices gained volume and the darkness became deeper, hungrier. "Now."

It wasn't an order to be disobeyed. Without turning his eyes from the shades engulfing and dousing the flames, Kakashi groped for the door until he found the handle and opened it, the cold air coming from outside a blessing against his skin. He turned and ran then, hearing Iruka's breaths and steps right behind him but unable to turn around to check that he was really there. If he turned around and lost even one second, it would all be in vain. He trusted Iruka, knew he could keep up, knew he was running just as fast only half a step behind Kakashi regardless of what the voices were saying. 

Kakashi accessed his mental map of the inn, the one he had composed when he arrived and while he was trying to find the exit to this accursed place. The girl had said there was a door leading to the kitchen next to the entrance, and that the kitchen had the only way outside. If they tried the main door, Kakashi had no doubt they would be back in the bathhouse in under a second, and this time there would be no escaping from there. 

He took a turn to the right when he saw the corridor opening, heard more voices coming from the left, form the direction of the room he had been in, and out of the corner of his eyes saw shadow arms grasping for them. "Faster!" he shouted, pushing himself into obeying his own order. He didn't need to stop while he did some hand signs, though, and he sent a plume of fire in their direction, nothing as magnificent as what Iruka had done but enough to get him a couple of seconds respite.

The next corridor took them to the entrance, it wasn't empty this time, but the old lady didn't resemble anything human anymore. She opened her mouth, too wide and obscure, and Kakashi dodged her without stopping, throwing a barrage of shuriken that passed harmlessly through her. She laughed, maw opening wider until all form was lost and there as nothing but corruption there, many voices crying as one. 

"Kakashi, the kitchen," Iruka rasped, breathless. He saw it then, the only door not opened and not surrounded by that same darkness. He made some symbols and electricity arced in the air, blowing the door inwards as they barrelled past it.

He could see it, right at the back there was a small rectangle of greying light, almost gone. Outside the sun had almost set.

" _You won't make it_ ," the shadows whispered, rattling the kitchen equipment. " _You'll stay here with us_. _We're going to play with you forever_."

"No, you won't," Iruka all but snarled, pushing at Kakashi's back, hurrying him wordlessly.

Some of the knives inside the kitchen flew at them as they crossed the short distance to the door, Kakashi's chiidori still encasing his hand even as one of the knives graced his face, another one embedding itself in his thigh. He didn't feel it, not until he was right by the garden door and he had blown this one open as well. 

He was suddenly outside, in the middle of an overgrown garden surrounded by tall grass and dead flowers. He was alone.

Kakashi turned to where the house had been, but there was nothing. He took a step in that direction, ignoring the pain in his thigh proving the house had been there a second ago, and yet Iruka wasn't out there with him. His breath burned as it scraped down his throat, chest constricted. 

This couldn't be happening, Iruka had been right behind him, he had heard him, he had felt him. 

He had been right behind. 

"Iruka!" he screamed, the rain drenching him again.

...

Iruka saw Kakashi vanish out of the door, one moment there and the next just gone as if he had never been there at all. He turned to Kyone as the darkness closed around them She had stopped running, was a few steps behind him, too far to make it. She was keeping the shadows at bay, though.

He stopped as well, one foot almost out of the door. "Kyone, come on!"

She turned to him, her eyes turning bright yellow and fully inhuman. "You go, I belong on this side."

"No, come with us."

"They can't hurt me." The longer she spoke, the less human she looked. Her pale skin became white fur and sharp fangs sprouted in her mouth. Kyone approached him. "You're the first one I've ever saved, he's the first one to come in knowingly. The Amemori is not invincible, they now know that."

Iruka looked to the door and before he knew he was propelling forward, stumbling out of the door and into Kakashi, who was just standing under the pouring rain with a devastated expression. It melted the moment he saw Iruka, enveloping him in a tight hug.

"I thought you hadn't made it," Kakashi breathed against his neck, he was trembling slightly, and his arms were tight enough to be painful. "I thought I lost you again."

Iruka didn't mind, he was trembling as well, his entire body still flooded with adrenaline and terror. He wanted to scream, but the moment he started, he wasn't going to stop. Instead, he put his hands on Kakashi's face and kissed him. He kissed him messily and desperately, the furthest thing from arousing he had ever kissed anyone, but it was perfect because they were both alive and they were out there, under the rain drinking each other's gasps and moans that were more than a bit pained. "I'm here," Iruka was saying against Kakashi's mouth, pouring the words inside with teeth and tongue."I'm here. I'm real. I'm here." They were clutching at each other, uncaring of the rain or the cold, at least until Iruka started shivering with something more than adrenaline. 

All that time he had been wearing just the inn's yukata and slippers. 

They moved apart, just enough that they were still touching but proper speech was possible once again. Kakashi was bleeding from a cut on his face and, Iruka looked down, had been stabbed on the leg. Nothing critical, but he was going to need medical attention. And Iruka, well he was definitely going to need medical and psychological attention once they were back in Konoha. 

Among many other things. One year, his mind still baulked at the idea. One fucking year.

None of that mattered, not right now. 

He took Kakashi's hand and pressed his lips against his knuckles. "Let's go home."

…

Kyone looked at the two men entwined by the side of the road as the house disappeared.

The Amemori was still standing, and it would come back again but they had hurt it this time, Kyone had felt it, and it had not claimed anyone. She had been able to influence one of them, made him listen to her and believe her words. And it had been enough, it was more than she had ever achieved before. It made all her efforts, and all her failures, worth it. 

She shook her fur, ignoring the outraged cries of the Amemori, and trotted back to the temple. 

She was not going to allow it to claim more victims, and one day she was going to finally destroy it, maybe not yet but time was the one thing she had. 

…


End file.
